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In the beginning, Planet Fitness had a juice bar, spinning
classes, freestanding weights – and not enough members. The
fitness franchise's secret to success? Getting rid of everything
that made a gym "good."

When Planet Fitness was founded in 1992, it wasn't very different
from the competition. Founded by Chris Rondeau, Planet Fitness
competed for customers with two similar gyms located in the small
city of Dover, N.H. Members paid $29 a month for the usual
amenities.

Soon after, Rondeau decided to turn the turn the time-honored
equation for recruiting new gym members on its head. At the time,
around 12 percent of Americans belonged to a gym. Today, the
figure is closer to 15 percent -- but still, in a small city like
Dover, that's a limited number of customers.

"We realized we were competing for the same 12 percent [as the
other gyms]," says Rondeau. "It just wasn't enough people."

Instead, Rondeau decided it was time to try and reach the 88
percent of Americans who, for whatever reason, weren't going to
the gym. In 1996 he cut the price to $10 a month, where it has
remained ever since. Then, in 2000, he stripped out the features
that members weren't regularly using – the juice bar, classes and
some equipment.

The big cut went against everything that those in the fitness
industry believed people looked for in a gym membership. But it
achieved exactly what Rondeau hoped it would: It brought in
people who had never had a gym membership before.

Throughout the '90s, Planet Fitness added programs that now
define the brand, like having a pizza party on the first Monday
of every month. It strove to be seen as a place where members
could work out without pressure.

"If people commit and try to make fitness part of their life,
they deserve to splurge once in a while," says Rondeau.

Finally, in 2002, Rondeau decided it was time to take Planet
Fitness to another level and begin franchising. In 2003, Eric Dore and Shane
McGuiness opened the chain's first franchised location in
Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Today, Planet Fitness has 827 locations, with only 54
corporate-owned gyms. With membership still at $10 a month,
Rondeau is now combining speedy expansion and budget-friendly
memberships to create a fitness franchise that copies the best of
the fast-food industry.

"We wanted to really come up with the McDonald's of the fitness
world, in the sense that we wanted the customer to experience the
same product no matter where they were," says Rondeau. "I always
say it's the Big Mac approach – that the Big Mac always tastes
the same no matter where you're at."

Having franchisees who are on the same page as Rondeau is key to
creating a strong, universal Planet Fitness brand. That means
franchisees who aren't necessarily from the fitness world, who
will keep the gym a judgment-free zone.

While the rest of the fitness franchise world used to scoff at
Planet Fitness's unconventional and pizza-loving methods, now
that the gym is the largest gym franchise in America competitors
have changed their tune. Increasingly, if they aren't aiming for
the boutique, studio-style model, new fitness franchises are
adopting Planet Fitness's budget-friendly tactics. For example,
Anytime Fitness, Entrepreneur's No. 1 franchise on 2014's
Franchise 500, was founded in 2001 and advertises affordable
membership and 24/7 access. Retro Fitness, founded in 2002,
offers a few more services than Planet Fitness, but only charges
$20 a month.

Rondeau isn't worried by the copy-cats. "We always say, let's do
what's in the best interest of the customer. And if we do that,
which the rest of the industry doesn't seem to do very well,
we'll win."

That doesn't mean membership prices will rise. Rondeau says he
hopes to never raise the cost above $10 per month. The
inexpensive and accessible model has certainly served the chain
well so far. Rondeau says that he predicts that Planet Fitness
will hit one thousand locations early next year – a figure no
fitness franchise so far has reached.

"If we break 1,000 stores, we're in uncharted waters, the
industry has never really seen this before," he says. Bigger,
cheaper and more streamlined than any of the competition – Planet
Fitness might as well rename itself the "McGym."